Understanding The Trucking Safety Laws That Might Affect Your Accident Claim

Truck accidents are among the worst crashes on the road. Since trucks are larger and heavier than regular passenger vehicles, they cause a lot of damage when involved in an accident. Pursuing an accident claim involving these commercial vehicles is different and often more challenging than cases involving another passenger vehicle. The trucking industry understands the dangers these vehicles pose on the road, and they have laws to prevent and mitigate them. Understanding these laws puts you in a better position to pursue your claim. Here are some of the laws and how they affect your case.  

The Federal Regulations

The federal government has created various measures to ensure that the entire commercial vehicle sector does not become a safety problem for the general public. These include guidelines on the hours of service for the truck drivers. Typically, the drivers have a limited number of hours that they can drive in a day. For example, any driver carrying goods from one part of the country to another should not exceed the eleven-hour limit. If you investigate and find that the driver had exceeded this limit at the time of the accident, you can sue the trucking company for contravening the law. 

Fleet Maintenance Regulations

The law is also strict about the level of maintenance that the trucking companies should subject their vehicles to. Generally, the fleet company should service them regularly and ensure they do not pose a hazard to the other motorists. Investigating this angle of the accident can help you find other people to hold accountable for your accident. For example, you might find that the trucking company had contracted someone to handle the maintenance, and this maintenance company failed in their duty. You could also go after these third parties as you hold the driver and the company liable.

Driver Training

The traffic law does not allow everyone with a license to operate a truck. You need to take a specialty driving class and qualify in heavy vehicle operation to drive one. Training is a crucial angle to investigate during a truck accident claim. If the driver did not have the training, experience, and competence to handle a heavy vehicle, you could hold the company that hired or recruited them accountable for the accident. 

The crucial step in resolving truck accident cases is getting a competent lawyer to walk you through the process. They can investigate all these aspects of the case and create the best strategy to get you compensated. To learn more about truck accident law, contact an auto accident law firm—such as Graves Edward M III Law Office.